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Sporting Events of the Week

By Martin Green04 August 2019

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Premier League

The 2019/20 season begins when Liverpool host Norwich at Anfield on Friday night. The Reds came within a whisker of securing a first ever Premier League title last season, but they ultimately finished just one point behind Man City. They will be desperate to go one better this time around, and they should begin their campaign with a victory over newly promoted Norwich. Liverpool to win and both teams to score looks interesting at 21/10 with 888 Sport, as the Canaries are strong going forwards.

Man City will fancy their chances of picking up a win away at West Ham, while Spurs should beat Aston Villa in the late game on Saturday. Arsenal are priced at 4/5 with Bet365 to win away at Newcastle on Sunday and that looks like a tempting option. The Gunners are not great on the road, but they have a magnificent attack after signing Nicolas Pepe from Lille for £72 million, and Newcastle might struggle in their first game under Steve Bruce. The biggest game of the weekend sees Man Utd take on Chelsea, who lost Eden Hazard this summer and brought in Frank Lampard as their new boss. Betfair has an attractive 4/5 on both teams to score in that one.

Rugby Union

The World Cup takes place in Japan next month and there are some big Test matches at the weekend to help the teams prepare. Tournament favourites New Zealand will be keen to secure an emphatic victory over Australia after their surprise 16-16 draw with the Springboks last time out. Ladbrokes has 8/13 on New Zealand to win half-time / full-time and that looks tempting, as the Aussies have struggled in recent years. South Africa should make short work of Argentina on Saturday, and you can find good value by giving them a modest handicap. Ireland are expected to crush Italy, but England v Wales looks like a fascinating game.

Rogers Cup

Several big names are battling to win the Rogers Cup in Montreal this week. French Open champion Rafa Nadal is the 2/1 favourite with Betfred to lift the trophy, but he faces stern competition from some of the brightest young stars in tennis. Alexander Zverev is priced at 10/1, while Stefanos Tsitsipas, Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev are all 12/1. The younger generation has struggled to make an impact in Grand Slams, but in best-of-three sets tournaments they are dangerous. Nick Kyrgios might also make an interesting each-way shot at 20/1, as he has the ability to flourish in this tournament. Simona Halep is the 11/2 favourite to win the women’s tournament after her demolition job on Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final. You can find odds of 9/1 on Williams.

Championship

Huddersfield’s first game back in the Championship sees them host Derby on Monday night. The Rams almost secured promotion last season, but they ended up suffering a narrow defeat to Aston Villa in the playoff final. Frank Lampard has now left to take over as manager at Chelsea and Dutch legend Phillip Cocu has taken over. This could be a bit of a cagey affair between two teams in transition and the draw looks attractive here at 49/20 with Unibet. Middlesbrough should be fun to watch this season after replacing Tony Pulis with Jonathan Woodgate. He promised more attacking football, and they drew 3-3 at Luton in their opener. You can find 8/11 on both teams to score in their match against Brentford. Fulham, who were relegated along with Huddersfield and Cardiff from last season’s Premier League, suffered a surprise defeat to Barnsley on the opening weekend. But they should bounce back with a win against Blackburn on Saturday and they are well priced to do so.